The tide has started to turn back in the Bucs’ favor in recent weeks as they returned to the win column over the Giants and Panthers. In another must-win game, they battled the Raiders on Sunday afternoon to stay in the mix to win the NFC South and stay in the playoff race.

While Tampa Bay won 28-13, there were still moments that they wished they had back that highlight this week’s Most Disappointing column.

The Second Quarter

Bucs QB Baker Mayfield – Photo by: USA Today

After getting off to a 14-0 start and well on their way to routing the Raiders, the Bucs kept their opponent in the game after a largely disappointing second quarter. It has been a part of the game that has not been their friend this season, and that was a continuing trend in this one.

First, Baker Mayfield kicked off the quarter with an interception on a third-and-8 throw intended for Jalen McMillan on a screen pass. Instead, it was defensive end K’Lavon Chaisson who came down with it as Mayfield threw off his back foot and did not see Chaisson drop back enough to make a play on the football.

While Lavonte David bailed him out of his first turnover after recovering a bad Jackson Powers-Johnson snap, David and the Bucs’ defense could not do it again. Getting the ball back on offense again, Mayfield fumbled the ball after getting sacked on another third-down play.

The second turnover allowed the Raiders to have a short field and they capitalized with a touchdown to make it 14-7. After the offense failed to get going in response, Las Vegas had another short field and drove down enough to make a chip-shot field goal and bring it closer to a 14-10 game. Playing a 2-10 team that has lost eight straight games, the only ones who beat Tampa Bay in the second quarter were themselves. Costly mistakes allowed their opponent to stay in the game and eliminated the chance of this one being a blowout after a strong start.

Bucs’ Run Defense

Against a dead-last run game on its fourth-string running back, one would think the Bucs’ defense would have had a successful day stopping the Raiders ground attack and force them to be one-dimensional.

So much for that.

Undrafted second-year back Sincere McCormick had no problem getting yards in bunches, finishing the game with 15 carries for 78 rushing yards. McCormick’s ability to pick up yards allowed Las Vegas to stay in the game, even in terms of time of possession. The run defense in this one was lackluster, especially along the interior as defensive tackles Vita Vea and Calijah Kancey did little.

ILB Vi Jones

Vi Jones was the fill-in inside linebacker after K.J. Britt and J.J. Russell were both ruled out with injuries. Jones got a chance to make the most of extended playing time and impress head coach Todd Bowles. Rather than make plays, the young linebacker was invisible outside of one play, and not for a good reason.

On a third-and-goal from the Tampa Bay two-yard line, it appeared as if the Raiders would have to settle for a field goal. Quarterback Aidan O’Connell got the ball off to tight end Brock Bowers, but O’Connell’s throw appeared short. Jones tackled Bowers before the pass came down and was called for defensive pass interference, which made it first-and-goal from the one-yard line. O’Connell then punched it in for a touchdown, giving them some life at Jones’ expense.

Bucs Offensive Line

Bucs QB Baker Mayfield and Raiders CB Darnay Holmes – Photo by: USA Today

They looked good in the first quarter. After that, the big guys struggled to control the game up front. It wasn’t even Maxx Crosby who made the biggest impact. Not all of the sacks and pressure are on them as Mayfield does get himself into sacks with the way he moves around the pocket, but he was also not afforded much time to go through his reads with the pocket closing in on him. Not only that but nearly every offensive lineman was called for a penalty.

Left tackle Tristan Wirfs: Offensive holding

Left guard Ben Bredeson: False start

Center Graham Barton: Offensive holding

Right tackle Luke Goedeke: False start